Summer Safety and Health Tips
for Kids and Parents
ummertime can be the best time of the year for families, with kids out of school and plenty of time for vacations, sports, and outdoor fun. Unfortunately, many families may find their fun cut short by the injuries that can result from those summer activities. Here’s a startling statistic: Children ages 14 and under will make 3 million visits to the emergency room this summer nationwide.
Want to keep your kids from being among them? “Don’t take a vacation from safety,” says pediatrician Annette Thomas, M.D. Here are five simple tips to help keep you and your children out of the emergency room and on the beach, the soccer field, or wherever you love to be.
Outfit your young athletes with appropriate protective gear for sports and make sure it fits properly. Life jackets, knee guards, or bike helmets that don’t fit well can’t protect those precious bodies like they should.
Never turn your back on a young child in the water. Drowning is the second-leading cause of accidental death in children 14 and under, and proper adult supervision frequently can prevent it. “It only takes a few seconds for a child to be at risk,” Dr. Thomas notes.
Make sure your child knows how to warm up properly. Young muscles need time to warm up before they can endure the stresses of sports without tearing or straining.
Be relentless about skin protection. Sunscreen and hats are essentials to prevent painful and damaging sunburn. “But sunscreen is not recommended for babies under six months, so they need to be completely shielded from the sun,” says Dr. Thomas.
Watch out for heat problems once the temperatures begin to peak. “Heat-related illness can be masked in children,” says Dr. Thomas, “so it’s important to keep fluids intake up, avoid allowing the kids to get overheated, and make sure they cool down properly.” Symptoms can include headache, fatigue, and cramps, nausea, or vomiting.
The Medical Update is presented as a community service by Coastal Carolina Medical Center, located at Highway 278 and Interstate 95 in Hardeeville. Dr. Annette Thomas is a part of Palmetto Pediatrics of the Lowcountry at the practice’s Bluffton office.
Injury Facts
Accidental injury is the leading cause of death for U.S. children from one to 14 years old. In 2002, 5,305 children died from accidental injuries.
The leading causes of death from accidental injury were motor vehicle occupant injury, airway obstruction, drowning, pedestrian injury and burns.
In 2002, injuries to children ages 14 and under resulted in 233,000 hospitalizations, more than 2.3 million visits to hospital outpatient departments and 17 million visits to physician’s offices.
Injuries are the second leading cause of hospitalization and the leading cause of emergency room visits among children under 14.
The annual cost of child injury deaths in United States is an estimated $34.5 billion (U.S. Dollars)..
Sources: National SAFE KIDS Campaign and Dr. Annette Thomas
